German artist introduces a new way of using the petit pave at the 6th Curitiba Biennial

Uma praça da liberdade (A place of freedom) (2011)

One installation has been drawing the audience’s attention at the Museu Oscar Niemeyer. In one of the exhibition rooms of the 6th Curitiba Biennial, a platform of petit pave (traditional sidewalk paving stones), covered with cushions, invites the visitors to sit down, reflect and relax about the work signed by the German artist Adrian Lohmüller.

After significant research about this type of brick of Portuguese origin, the artist proposes a new use for it: sitting down on it, instead of walking on it as usual. Baptized as “Praça da Liberdade”, the work was created especially for the Curitiba Biennial. It is a urban form used in a popular geometric composition, carrying the local identity and new ways of experiencing public space. The platform is made of petit pave mosaic covered with patterned cushions.

In Curitiba, petit pavé sidewalks are quite traditional. In the center of the city, it is possible to find mosaic made of black and white bricks representing local symbols such as the Araucaria pine tree and the pinhão (pine fruit/seed), besides names of buildings and ventures.

Adrian Lohmüller was born in 1977, in Gengenbach (Germany) and today he lives in Berlin. His work was already seen in important cultural centers such as the Städtische Galerie Nordhorn and Mining the Moon, in Berlin, besides participating in events such as the 6th Berlin Biennial, among others.

The 6th Curitiba Biennial will be open to the public until November 20, with works by more than 80 artists from 37 countries and five continents. The general program includes an educational project, lectures, roundtables, courses, workshops, film exhibits, performances and urban interferences, occupying the main museums, cultural centers, streets and parks in the city. For the complete program and further information about guided tours, mediated tours, bike tours, van tours and tours on foot, access the website www.bienaldecuritiba.com.br.